The bola is a primitive hunting tool that was originally used by the Chinese, Eskimos and South American Indians. Bolas are a throwing device made of weights on the ends of interconnected cords, designed to capture animals by entangling their legs or wings. They are most famously used by the South American gauchos. Gauchos used bolas to capture running cattle or game.

For detailed information about bolas from different cultures, please visit the flight-toys bola web page.

This bola is one of the best ethnographic examples of a real functional bola that I have seen. Each of the balls has a stone or solid sand interior surrounded by a leather pouch. One of the balls is smaller than the other two balls as expected. The pouch is unusual in that it has leather stiching sewn into the seams that seperate each quarter of the ball covers. The leather is dry and stiff and is fine for display. There are leather softeners that can be used to soften the cords if you plan to throw this bola. This is not an antique, but it is one of the nicer bolas that you will find for sale and it is very functional. Cord length = 90 -> 95 cm ; Ball diameters = 6 -> 6.5 cm ; Weight = 494 gm